DILI, 7 september 2023 (TATOLI) – União das Cidades Capitais de Língua Portuguesa (UCCLA) and Dili Municipality Authority (DMA) and partnership with Timor-Leste Women’s Business Association (AEMTL) officially launched the competition of Timorese young women’s entrepreneurship contest “Dili Innovate Business Idea “Idea-Dili Inovar”.
European Union Ambassador, Marc Friedrich, said this competition aims to encourage women to raise innovative ideas on business activity to develop businesses and also contribute to economic development in Timor-Leste.
“Entrepreneurship is more than just creating a company. It’s about solving problems, driving innovation, and shaping a brighter, more sustainable future. Empowering young women to take business leadership is not only a social imperative, but a priority economic and development goal,” European Union Ambassador, Marc Friedrich said in his remarks at the launching ceremony which took place at the Centro Cultural, Jorge Sampaio, at the Embassy of Portugal, in Dili.
The competition is financed by the European Union, under the project “Partnership to Strengthen Urban Governance, Social Inclusion and Promote Entrepreneurship in Dili, Timor-Leste”, worth three million dollars.
This competition is aimed at young entrepreneurs aged between 17 and 25 years, whose applications are individual or collective between three elements, who live in Dili, or who wish to develop their innovative business activities in the capital city.
UCCLA representative, Raquel Carvalho, informed that this project aims to promote women’s entrepreneurship in Dili, in response to the encouragement of young women to explore business opportunities, encourage more young Timorese women to reflect on entrepreneurship and business concepts in response to market needs, and stimulate the economy local, where competition should have a positive impact on the creation of new businesses and jobs, thus contributing to economic growth in the nation’s capital.
“The “DILI innovative Idea” competition focuses on three categories: Environment, Tourism/Restaurant, and Services, allowing candidates to explore business opportunities and help create new companies”, he explains.
He clarified that the first category includes business ideas that promote responsible practices and pay attention to environmental preservation and protection, the tourism and catering category includes business ideas in the hotel, hospitality, recreation, food, and beverage sectors and the last category includes various service provisions, which may involve, among others, financial services, health, information and communication technology, consulting, education, transportation services, social support.
In the same place the president of the Dili Municipality Authority, Guilhermina Saldanha, on the other hand, stated that this competition is an opportunity to provide space for young women to showcase their talents and entrepreneurial capacity with innovative ideas to create their businesses.
“Innovation is an important factor for the progress and development of any field or sector. “This allows us to find creative solutions to the challenges we face and helps us move towards a better future,” he said.
Its leaders assess that the Dili-Inovar contest will help regional governments [municipalities] to identify potential entrepreneurs who have innovative ideas, especially in the capital.
Guilhermina Saldanha took this opportunity to urge young women to try to see the world differently and conduct their business in a revolutionary way.
Registration is open from tomorrow until October 8 and applications can be submitted online at www.facebook.com/ideias Dili innovate or via email: Ideias.dili.inovar@gmail.com. In addition, interested parties can register directly at the project site at the Dili City Government head office.
The twenty most innovative business ideas selected in the first selection stage will receive four months of theoretical and practical training, between November 2023 and March 2024, by AEMTL and the Instituto de Apoio ao Desenvolvimento Empresarial (IADE).
The selection of the 20 most promising business ideas will take place from 9 to 25 October and theoretical and practical training will take place from 6 November to 15 March.
In April 2024, candidates will be submitted to the final selection, after a public presentation, the six business plans with the best scores will be selected and awarded for project implementation in the second semester.
The results will be announced on April 26 and assistance and monitoring of the implementation of business ideas will begin from May 13 to December 31, 2024.
Candidates selected in the first stage and who present their business plan will receive a tablet and participation certificate available for each application.
Meanwhile, the six candidates selected in the second stage will receive incentives to implement business ideas, with the total amount allocated to the six winners being US$90,000, which will be disbursed in stages according to the plan that will be determined in the implementation monitoring plan.
Journalist: José Belarmino De Sá
Editor: Nelia B.
